Unfortunately, the newly named tournament is often forgotten by hockey fans during the year for two reasons. First, the Hlinka-Gretzky Cup is held in August, so it’s not the most opportune time for hockey fans to sit back and watch. Most of us are outside enjoying the weather, on vacation, working…you get my drift.
The second reason is that the tournament doesn’t feature any NHL-prospects. The majority of hockey fans are not as invested in junior players who have no affiliation to their favourite NHL teams. Due to their ages, these players likely only have a year of junior hockey experience under their belt.